Margo Gaffney
Margo Gaffney Margo Jane Gaffney was an inmate who appeared from episodes 92-448, although a prisoner with the surname Gaffney was mentioned in Ep 063, which may or may not have referred to Margo. Life In Prison Margo first appeared as a background Prisoner (92), in her first dramatic scene she is hired by Bea Smith to cut Sharon Gilmour's hair, later on Margo started to get sick of Bea's hand craft project so she and her goons Lil and Bev walk past Chrissie Latham and give her a bashing (97) after she helped Sharon Gilmour hide drugs that were smuggled by her lesbian girlfriend Judy Bryant. Margo disappears from the show but later appears again during the protests organized by Bea and Judy after Sharon Gilmour's death (121), Margo and Lizzie later held Erica Davidson and Meg Jackson hostage until they get drunk and were tricked to come out. Margo (then established as Wentworth's prison bookie) (123-125) had her stashed money targeted by Judy, who wants money to support her planned escape. Margo continues her operation outside the prison when she is one of the women selected for factory work experience (127), and tempts the factory bookkeeper Kay White to run up a huge debt which Kay White is put inside for embezzling money to pay off her gambling debts (135), Margo first attempts to put pressure on Kay to pay up by lacing her food with glass (136), but it is another prisoner who eventually kills Kay by battering her over the head with an electric jug. She re-appears shortly before she is due for release in (179), but is back inside almost immediately when her boyfriend Wayne involves her in a payroll job which develops into a siege. Both Wayne and his friend Bazza are killed by the police. She has one episode back inside and causes so much trouble that she has to be sedated and transferred to A block (185). But not for long. When Bea Smith is transferred to Barnhurst, Judy orchestrates a phony conflict for the vacant top dog position to get Bea transferred back. However, Margo is given a ten year sentence for her part in the armed robbery and feels she has nothing much to lose, and declares herself top dog (198) so she spends time tormenting and attacking inmates including Judy Bryant whom was in the press earlier then got attacked by Margo. Later Bea Smith returns to Wentworth from Barnhurst but comes with amnesia after an accident in the van. Mum also comes to Wentworth after Bea came to her place and Mum was charged with harboring a criminal. Even though she had amnesia she strangled Margo whilst defending Mum. Margo's reign as top dog doesn't last long after Bea recovers her memory after Margo, Lil and Bev knock her out and lock her in a storage closet (202) Margo is forced to keep the recovery a secret but try tries to make Bea crack after she thumped Doreen (203) the plan didn't work as Bea just stood there but attacked Margo in her own cell later, Margo gives evidence against Bea at her trial after Vera has promised to have her transferred to Barnhurst - a promise that she is unable to keep. To get some protection, Margo starts to deal with new officer Terry Harrison and tapes his conversations to put pressure on him to get her booze and other goodies, but not long after she is found unconscious and in a pool of blood (206). She accuses Terry of bashing her, and is put in isolation (207) but the culprit turns out to be Doreen Anderson. Margo returns (apparently having been in isolation for about six months!) in (247) just as Sandy Edwards gives the OK for a riot and plays a minor part in it and is transferred to A block (248).She is returned to H block in (257) and appears now and again, playing a dangerous game by changing sides between Marie Winter, Sandy Edwards and Kate Peterson. After Sandy disappears, Kate warns Margo that she is next in line for "special treatment" and demonstrates by grabbing her by the throat (269). While Carol Lewis is inside, Margo acts as her protector, as she sees parallels between Carol's situation and her own experience of being involved in a robbery with "two useless men". Margo is transferred to Barnhurst in (284), supposedly because of her gambling activities, though we haven't seen Margo operating as a bookie for some time. Margo turns up next at the newly opened Driscoll House whilst she is on the run after escaping from Barnhurst (309). She steals Meg's car but is recaptured and brought back to Wentworth (310) at a time when Meg has already been sent to Wentworth for contempt of court after refusing to get Judy into trouble for harboring Margo at Driscoll House. Margo attacks Meg when Meg tells her the man she hit with her car has died in hospital (310) and she organizes a bashing for Meg in (311) as she blames Meg for calling in the police. She is later tarred (Treacle) and feathered by Bea and Chrissie (310). She starts operating as prison bookie again but this time under Bea's supervision (315) as competition for Faye who is controlled by Joan Ferguson. When a charity concert at Woodridge is proposed Joan tells Margo to volunteer as she wants some troublemakers involved in order to discredit Colleen (319). Margo proves how much trouble she can cause when she leads other women in throwing boiling water over Sally Dempster when she finds out she bashed her own child. Margo's musical talents come to the fore in rehearsal for the concert (320), but she plans an escape from Woodridge which is then prevented by Joan (321). When Bea tells the women her plans to get back at Joan Margo pretends she isn't interested because she has her own ideas. Whilst Chrissie Latham is told by Bea to set fire to the laundry to distract the screws Margo grabs a Molotov cocktail and throws it in the same place where turpentine is stored and sets the whole prison on fire. Bea and Chrissie are suspects of the fire but they eventually find out that Margo is responsible and violently made her confess in front of the other inmates but she refused to admit anything to the screws. After this she disappears from the series for a while. Margo is transferred back from Barnhurst in (442), looking like she has been taking heroin (cut with peroxide) for a period of time. She offers to sell drugs in the prison but Myra warns her off. Joan is equally interested in Margo's dealing because she suspects Margo has been transferred in order to start a new market at Wentworth. Margo then has to cope with Reb Kean, and her attempt at top dog position but Myra take it up instead. The cocaine delivered by her "sister" is stolen by Reb and Margo is reduced to running a book with Myra's approval (447). Margo is transferred to Blackmoor after she tries to frame Reb for an attack on Myra, but Reb outsmarts her by planting the evidence in Margo's own cell (448). Margo Gaffney was played by Jane Clifton Jane Cliftons first appearance in 'Prisoner' was playing a prostitute named in Yvonne in episode 9. Trivia Though Margo's last name was Gaffney its said on Episode 93 that her last name was Dempsey. Category:Inmates Category:Top Dogs Category:Antagonists Category:Protagonists Category:Females Category:Barnhurst Inmates Category:Drug Dealers Category:Blackmoor Inmates Category:1980s Characters Category:1980 Arrivals Category:1984 Departures